A 2020 Look at the State of IP Technology and SMPTE2110

A 2020 Look at the State of IP Technology and SMPTE2110 posted: 10/02/2020

by Marc Segar - Joe Sigornino - Casper Choffat - Scott Rothenberg

We recently sat down with some of our leading technologists at NEP to discuss the state of IP Technology in the industry. See their thoughts below on where we are, what is working, what isn't working and where we are headed.

NEP's diverse body of work covers much more than just outside broadcasts and live events. Today, NEP provides a complete spectrum of solutions that help you bring world-class entertainment to life. NEP offers centralized multi-camera production solutions around the globe to streamline the most complex productions. Our centralized production solutions help create greater efficiency, reduce the need for on-site staff and allow resources to be shared across multiple productions using a hub environment - all while safeguarding the quality of programs. This central-hub solution can help clear the way for creativity, flexibility and consistency across productions.

The current state of IP Technology/SMPTE2110 Give me a snapshot, from your perspective, of where IP technology is in the industry right now.

Casper: In my opinion IP technology, in the form of SMPTE2110, is in a maturing state, but IP technology in the broadcast industry as a whole is still very immature and has many challenges. NEP has been using IP uncompressed audio and video since 2015 and has always been at the forefront of this technology, helping the industry to move forward in its developments, and function as a test site for many manufacturers. In order to become mature in this space there is a need to invest in people and training. Learning how to work with IP within the broadcast industry is very challenging and has a very steep learning curve. We are investing in this here at NEP, investing in our people and training programs, to ensure we are where we need to be.

Joe: I agree. As Casper says, we have been using IP for a while at NEP. It has been 5 years since we started design on our first IP deployment here in the U.S., Supershooter CBS, and we are currently rolling out number seven with Supershooter 9. In the industry, IP is starting to settle in. We are just getting to the point that gear with IP I/O is being delivered. We are now in the stage of getting this gear fully functional, to pass interoperability tests, and sort out standard issues.

Marc: Yes. And we have to remember, IP technology comes in many flavours and is not one-size-fits-all-projects. Ultimately native and pure IP, whereby the baseband layer is completely removed, is still challenging. A more common approach is a hybrid, or blended, IP and baseband system. IP is still immature and requires a high skill level.

Scott: Yes, it is still in early stages, and everyone in the industry is figuring out interoperability. There is a lot going well out there, but generally it's not as smooth/ easy a transition as the move to SDI from analog. Training of engineers - and having really good engineers - is key.

Can you talk a little bit about where we are with standards in the industry?

Casper: If we look at uncompressed IP, it is my belief we have gotten to a good basic standard with SMPTE2110. The advantage of SMPTE2110 over other uncompressed IP standards is that it is able to create separate flows for each media type, meaning audio, video, metadata, etc. all have their own flows.

Marc: Yes, SMPTE 2110 was a great first step in a suite of standards for transporting media over IP with discreet elements. Now we need to work on the overarching control standards like NMOS IS04 and IS05, which will simplify the approach for less skilled operators and IP will become more commonplace.

Joe: I agree, the basic standards have been adopted and are in revision stages. We are now finding a number of areas where the standard is loosely defined or missing critical areas of definition. This will be an ongoing process for the foreseeable future, but it is going well.

Scott: Absolutely. The basic standards are there, but they are general and leave room for interpretation, since not all manufacturers interpret them the same way, there have been some challenges. NMOS is not there and we really need something to make device discovery easier and more consistent.

How far have the manufacturers come on the equipment side of things?

Marc: More manufacturers are producing IP products, but at NEP we are still seeing issues in conforming to the standards. So, we continue to work closely with our vendors where they themselves are missing the skill to help move this in the right direction.

Casper: Yes. The manufacturers are the ones implementing the standards, and we see that most of them are now moving ahead with SMPTE2110 as a standard. Interoperability between manufacturers is in a maturing state, and we have a large role in pushing the manufacturers in this direction. We are letting the manufacturers know what they need to develop in order for us to be able to work with their equipment.

Joe: With the exception of the core routing systems the majority of equipment is in the first release stage. While some equipment has been available with IP I/O for some time it has, until recently, all come from one manufacturer - whose products were less common here in the US. Here, to make finding operators easier, our clients want the manufacturers they consider to be the standard brands to get the desired functionality up and running. This makes designing and implementing IP systems more difficult today, as standards develop and we run into interoperability issues. But it is following a logical course, standards are settling in, and the amount of available IP gear is increasing rapidly. We are moving in the right direction.

Scott: Absolutely, more equipment is becoming IP capable. However, there is sti

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